The training arena wasn't supposed to feel like a battlefield.But today, it damn sure did.
Four families stood along the upper rails, their heirs and hunters watching like vultures. Karn stood alone in the center — no weapon in hand, just his training clothes and that calm, unreadable stare.
The "test" was simple on paper: spar against one of the family prodigies. First to land three clean hits wins.Simple… except they picked Rael Dravik.
A wall of muscle with a greatsword as tall as Karn, Rael was already grinning like he'd won before it began."You sure you're unawakened, Kael?" Rael called, twirling the blade. "Wouldn't want to break you in half by accident."
Karn tilted his head. "You talk too much for someone who's gonna miss every swing."
The crowd oooh'd. Even Karn's older brother raised an eyebrow.
The referee shouted, "Begin!"
Rael charged like a damn bull. The greatsword came down with a roar, air splitting — and Karn stepped aside. Just one step. The blade hit the floor with a clang that echoed across the arena.
"What the—" Rael spun around, swinging again.Miss.Another swing.Miss.
The audience started murmuring."Is he reading every move?""No way, that's pure luck—"
Rael snarled and activated his mana, the sword blazing red. "Let's see you dodge this!"
The next strike should've cleaved Karn in two — but instead, Karn leaned back just enough for the blade to miss by inches, then stepped into Rael's guard. His palm shot forward, tapping Rael's chest once.
Bang!
It wasn't a hard hit. But Rael stumbled back like he'd been shoved by a damn wall.
"First point — Kael," the referee called.
"What the actual hell was that?!" someone from the Varos family yelled.
The next two points were faster. Rael swung, Karn slipped past, and with surgical precision, landed clean, controlled hits. By the third point, the arena was dead silent.
Match over.Three–zero.Unawakened… my ass.
Up on the rails, whispers turned into suspicion-laced stares."Damn… he's hiding something.""No unawakened fights like that.""This kid… he's dangerous."
Karn looked up at them, calm as ever — but in his chest, his heart was a war drum. He didn't just win. He'd sent a message: You can't test the sun without getting burned.
From the crowd, his mother Lyra's lips curved into the smallest smile.